When your belly is the size of a watermelon, your emotions are more erratic than a mental patient’s, your dogs are dragging in more mud and leaves on the daily than you knew existed in your tiny backyard and both your husband and four-year-old have habits of leaving dirty socks in the strangest places, it becomes increasingly easier to let the stress accumulate like piles of lint in a dryer’s lint catcher.
It’s because of what I mentioned (among many other daily stresses of life) that I made the bold decision last week to start meditation (not medication, MEDITATION- although I’m sure medication would help too…) Anyway, I read a brief how-to on mediation and dove right in.
I read the lengthy list of mental and physical benefits and decidedly went into it with a raised eyebrow and a highly skeptical, yet open, mind.
Let’s be perfectly honest here: the only thing I really wanted to gain from it was the ability to not flip out when my daughter wanted to jump in every mud puddle between my house and the car. I wanted to learn how to count down from ten, if you know what I mean…
You see, in my fast-paced, always in a hurry mind there’s usually no time for puddle-jumping. In her mind, though, I know she only sees me not letting her have the fun she deserves.
But I digress…
I started by setting aside a modest 10 minutes a day (and most days I haven’t even been able to meditate even that long). I’ve been trying my best to empty my mind, accept all thoughts that manage to squeak by and then let them go just as easily, listen to my heart and feel the energy while meditating.
I don’t know how good I’m doing, but I can tell you that after one week I feel more relaxed. After one week I freak out less if I’m not right on time or early. And after one week I am able to understand, accept and move past the little stuff.
Even more than that, I honestly am starting to feel as though I have a better understanding of how lives are connected and how it’s not always about getting from point A to point B, but about the journey in between. So far, I’m enjoying meditation and it’s had nothing but positive effects on me, despite my sessions being brief and sans a true teacher.
I think I will check in here occasionally with updates on how it’s going, if I’m sticking with it and new things that I have or haven’t learned through my experience. Feel free to chime in if you have knowledge of or experience with meditation. I’d love to hear it =)
Danielle Dayney 